Senate Bill No. 916: Comprehensive Nursing Act

Date: September 07, 2016

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The Philippines is the largest exporter of nurses in the world and Filipino nurses have proven to be one of the most highly skilled assets of our country. Sadly, nurses continue to be undervalued at home and vulnerable to dangerously long working hours and exploitative employment arrangements. Further, despite there being 200,000 underemployed or unemployed nurses, healthcare is still lacking in many rural areas.

If we invested in harnessing the massive potential of our existing healthcare professionals, we can address this healthcare shortage with a strong, competent, and professionally-regulated nursing board.

This bill seeks the creation of a Professional Regulatory Board of Nursing (PRBN) that will be responsible for ensuring that all aspects of the nursing profession are hlld up to standards of excellence. The PRBN will be mandated to promulgate quality standards of nursing education, research, practice, and management.

Through this measure, we will set a standard for academic excellence for all nursing programs in line with the Policies, Standards and Guidelines of the Commission on Higher Education.

The PRBN shall also implement an Advanced Practice Nursing Program which will provide professional development opportunities to existing nurses. Through this program, nurses can expand their skill base, assume more responsibilities on the medical floor, and be better able to serve our countrymen.

Most importantly, this bill aims to protect the welfare of our nurses and uplift the nursing profession by initiating studies on how healthcare professionals should be trained, managed, and developed in an organization, ensuring that working conditions and compensation are compliant with the Code of Ethics for nursing.

Filipino nurses must be empowered with better education, a broader skill base, and more viable opportunities within the country. Ultimately this will uplift the nursing profession while providing better healthcare to all Filipinos.

In view of the foregoing and to ascertain our commitment to the Filipino people, the approval of this bill is earnestly sought.